Miscellany (MS M.818).
Old vellum lined with a thick, roughly woven canvas.
54 leaves (1 column, 31-38 lines), bound : paper ; 220 x 140 mm
Robert Whytell, 16th century; Sir Henry Ingilby, his sale (London, Sotheby's, Oct. 21, 1920, lot 47) to Quaritch; Sir R. Leicester Harmsworth; purchased at the Harmsworth sale (London, Sotheby's, Oct. 15, 1945, lot 1983) in 1945.
Ms. miscellany of prose and poetry; written in northern England, possibly in Yorkshire, in the mid 15th century.
Watermarks on fol. 4-3, 9-14, 8-15, 41-52, 53-54 relate to Briquet # 11664-11728.
This manuscript contains an early version of the A text of Piers Plowman.
The last folio contains the final line of Piers, as well as Latin notes which add up the number of churches, towns, baronies, and counties in England. There are also 16th-century pen trials.
Textile: thick, roughly-woven canvas is carefully tacked to the inside of the vellum binding.
fols. 1r-5r: Epistle of Susannah -- fols. 5v-1v: Richard Rolle, Form of living, including two devotional lyrics -- fols. 16r-54v: William Langland, Piers Plowman.